


Ciò che si impara a proprie spese non si dimentica facilmente

by Judithcore



Category: Fairy Tail
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Crushes, F/M, Happy Ending, Idiots in Love, Secret Crush
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-27
Updated: 2019-02-27
Packaged: 2019-11-06 17:24:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,658
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17943974
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Judithcore/pseuds/Judithcore
Summary: Natsu learns the hard way not to go on Lucy's bad side.(Warning: mentions of periods. Don't read if it makes you uncomfortable)





	Ciò che si impara a proprie spese non si dimentica facilmente

**Author's Note:**

> Hi!  
> First time writer here!  
> I'm not a native English speaker, so the story was betaed by an amazing person (http://newgeht.tumblr.com), who put up with me and my lateness and lazyness (😁).  
> Anyway, I hope you enjoy!  
> Judith.
> 
> P.S. The title basically means that you don't forget easily things you learn from experience.
> 
> P.P.S. The story is part of an amazing event called Fairy Tail Big Bang on Tumblr. Go check it out if you haven't already!

As soon as she woke up that morning, Lucy had a feeling it was gonna be one of _those_ days.

You know, that kind of day that starts off completely normal, and then turns out to be the worst day you’ve ever lived.

Okay, maybe not the worst, but still pretty close.

As usual, that morning the alarm clock went off at 8:00 am, almost giving Lucy a heart attack and causing her to basically destroy the third alarm clock since the beginning of the month (and it wasn’t even the 15th yet!).

As usual, she met up with her friend Juvia on the campus' grounds and went to the college cafe to get breakfast before the beginning of that day's courses.

And as usual, she diligently took notes of each and every course (as she would say “I’m blonde, not stupid!”), then met up with Juvia again for lunch.

A pretty boring routine, right?

But it worked for them, and they made up for the boring routine during the week with the weekend, so it was not so very bad.

But at lunch, everything went downhill fast.

They were in the cafeteria, sitting together as usual and chatting casually, but Lucy was worried about her friend.

Earlier that morning, she noticed some discomfort on Juvia's face, but she was told not to worry (“It’s just a headache”, Juvia said, “I’ll be fine in a few hours”).

But Lucy could tell that was not the case.

She was about to ask her how she was, but she was interrupted before she could even start.

The cause of the interruption? Natsu Dragneel.

With his pink hair, he sure didn’t go by unnoticed, but he didn’t seem to care much about all the attention.

He was always with his friends Gray and Like, but the latter seemed to be absent that day (“Good”, thought Lucy, “that guy sure can’t take no for an answer”).

Not that she cared much for his attention anyway. How could she, when Natsu was in the same room?

Not that she would ever admit it out loud (God forbid it!), but she had a huge crush on the pink-haired boy.

She looked at him walking through the cafeteria and saw that he was headed at a table right next to hers!

She looked away shyly and felt heat creeping up her neck (“Damn it”, she thought, “why do I always have to blush around him?”).

It was then that she realized it was too quiet at her table: usually, Juvia would tease her non-stop about Natsu and her inability to stop blushing around him.

Lucy looked at her friend and was alarmed when she noticed she looked pale. Much paler than usual.

“Juvia? Are you alright?”, Lucy asked, her voice filled with concern.

“No, she answered, I think I got my period.” She seemed panicked for some reason.

“That’s it? I mean, surely you knew it was coming,” said Lucy, relieved that her friend was feeling somewhat okay (I mean, periods were still a pain to deal with, but the two of them were blessed enough to continue living their lives comfortably even through them).

“You don’t understand”, Juvia said in a panic. “It wasn’t due for another week! I’m not prepared for it!.”

“Oh shit”, whimpered Lucy, knowing fully well what she meant. Juvia wasn’t exactly the most organized person and, if she wasn’t on her period, she wouldn't have a single pad in her bag.

Fortunately, Lucy had plenty, but she wasn’t sure if they could help.

She knew perfectly well that Juvia had a very heavy flow and, with their luck, her pants had already gotten a stain.

Lucy tried to go through their options.

She definitely couldn’t give Juvia her jacket to tie around her waist. It was the middle of winter, after all! And they certainly couldn’t get up and walk to the nearest bathroom. If Juvia had indeed gotten a stain, the whole cafeteria would have seen it!

I mean, it’s not like periods were anything to be ashamed about (it’s a natural process, after all!), but it was still embarrassing.

While pondering about what to do, she heard something coming from Natsu's table.

Instinctively, she tried to listen to what they were saying, but when she did, she froze in her tracks.

“Can’t they talk about it somewhere else?”, said Gray with a hint of annoyance, his voice loud enough to be heard by the people in the vicinity.

“I know, right?”, stated Natsu, “It's so gross! It’s not like we need to hear you talking about blood while we’re eating. There’s a time and a place to talk about it!.”

_What jerks_ , thought Lucy with a frown, while trying to comfort poor Juvia, who seemed to be on the verge of tears from their words (she had always been a very sensitive person, so it was no surprise that she would feel attacked by what the boys were saying).

“Hey!” Exclaimed Lucy, getting their attention, “Do you guys have a problem here?”

“Who, us?”, Natsu had the audacity to ask.  
“Who else here, apart from you, do you think is so rude to comment about another person’s health?”, asked Lucy, her eyes alight with rage.

_And to think I had a crush on this jerk_ , she thought, feeling very disappointed with herself.

“Well, I’m sorry, but not everyone wants to hear about something gross like blood while they’re eating, especially since you’re not talking about something mundane like a paper cut”, said Gray, his tone condescending, like he was explaining something dumb to a child.

_Oh, it’s so on!_ , thought Lucy, _this guy pretends to lecture me about something he knows nothing about. Nothing mundane? Has he never took a health class in his entire life?_

Juvia sensed that Lucy was preparing for war, and when her friend was in that mood, no one and nothing could ever stop her.

But she tried nonetheless.

“Um, Lucy?”, she whispered cautiously, “it’s alright. You don’t have to do this. It’s not worth it.”

To be honest, Lucy almost forgot that Juvia was there.

“That’s not going to happen”, responded Lucy giving her friend her jacket (“fuck the cold, I don’t care if it’s the middle of winter. I’m going to give these jerks a piece of my mind and then some, even if it means I freeze to death in the meantime”, she thought).

“Right now, this isn’t even about you anymore”, she continued.

Juvia nodded quietly and accepted the jacket, tying it around her waist.

By now, the boys didn’t look so smug anymore.

After all, Lucy’s fiery attitude was well known around campus.

“These guys are in for one hell of a ride”, thought Juvia with a smile, not even upset about the whole situation anymore.

“Tell me something, boys”, Lucy said with a sickeningly sweet voice that caused shivers to crawl up the guys' arms. “Do you find it odd to wake up every day to a morning erection?”

At that, all of the males in the room started to cough up and Juvia blushed furiously (Lucy ignored them while trying to fight off her own blush. She was trying to get their heads straight, dammit! She couldn’t blush like a child who got caught with their hand in the cookie jar!. She didn’t even realize the whole cafeteria was interested in their exchange!).

“W-what kind of question is that?!” Yelled Natsu with a stutter in his voice. “Not that I have to answer to you, but of course it’s not odd! It’s a natural response of our bodies while we sleep. It’s periods that are simply not normal. You girls just don’t take good care of yourselves. If you looked after yourselves more, your body wouldn’t feel the need to purify itself so often”, he finished, looking so damn pleased with himself.

At that, everyone had their mouth agape.

Some even started facepalming themselves.

By that point, even Gray knew that what Natsu had said was completely and utter bullshit ("couldn't we just have kept our mouths shut?", he thought, "were we seriously so conceited that we thought we could end up victorious in a conversation about periods? What were we thinking?!").

“Um, Natsu?” Asked Gray tentatively, “Maybe you should just keep your mouth shut.”

“And why is that, Ice Brain?” Laughed Natsu, still acting so high and mighty, “Scared of some chicks?”

“Err, just a little bit”, admitted Gray while looking at the murderous look on Lucy's face.

Natsu laughed out loud at hearing that, but then he saw Gray looking genuinely terrified.

He followed his gaze and he met the fire that raged in Lucy's eyes.

Natsu gulped. He had never seen such a look on anyone's face, much less on hers: she was always so calm and collected. He didn't think she was even capable of getting angry.

It was at that moment that he knew he fucked up.

“Listen here, you little shits”, exclaimed Lucy, her body rigid and her hands in fists, “I don't think you understand how basic biology works. Seriously, have you ever taken a health class?”

Natsu went to give her an answer but was interrupted before he could even begin.

“Scratch that, I don't even want to know. You probably slept throughout the whole course if these are the results”, said Lucy, “How about I give you a quick lesson on how basic human biology works? Don't worry, I won't be too graphic. I wouldn't want your poor, innocent minds to be too tarnished by information you deem to be 'useless' and 'gross'.”

By now, everyone in the cafeteria was waiting with bated breath for what would come next.

It wasn't every day that you see an idiot being roasted, after all! (Because, even if half of the college population had a crush one of the three friends, Natsu and Gray were definitely acting like total idiots!).

  
_I'm screwed, but even when she gets angry, she is so hot!_ , thought Natsu, immediately reprimanding himself for his thoughts.

Here he was, about to be roasted alive, and all he could think about was his stupid crush on the girl who was currently busy throwing daggers at him from her eyes.

“Tell me Natsu”, Lucy said with a condescending tone, as if she were talking to a child, “Do you know where do babies come from?”

Natsu sputtered indignantly, his cheeks aflame with a furious blush.

“Of course I know where babies come from!” He yelled and then (as if he realized his voice was too high) he continued with a more normal tone, “Who do you take me for? I'm not a child!”

“Just checking. The level of culture you're showing is so low you might as well be a 4-year old child”, said Lucy, “Then you know that only women can bear a child. Well, when a girl hits puberty, her uterus (which, in case you didn't know, is the place where the baby grows) creates a soft lining of blood on the inside to better accommodate a baby. Are you listening to me, Natsu?” She asked when she noticed his absent look.

“Aye, sir!”, exclaimed Natsu, embarrassed for having been caught. Truth to be told, he was paying attention (everything Lucy said was worthy of attention, after all!), but he was also thinking about how hot she looked while in lecture mode!

“We'll see about that”, continued Lucy, “so, if the woman isn't pregnant the body gets rid of this lining, which is why we have cramps and lose blood. This is a completely normal process that should have been explained to you a long time ago and that, in case you forgot, happens every month to half of the world population. So, this is indeed something 'mundane' and it's nothing to laugh about”, she finished, glaring at Gray, who was doing his very best to become invisible.

Finished with her speech, Lucy looked around, only then noticing that everyone was staring at her with their mouths agape.

She blushed and looked down, muttering something about people never minding their own business, when she heard a clapping sound.

She looked up and saw that a girl stood up from her seat and started clapping at her, soon followed by other girls and then the whole cafeteria (even the boys! Who knew that her speech could be so interesting!).  
  
Lucy blushed even more when she heard people cheering. "Get 'em, girl!”, some shouted. "Show them what you're made of!", others exclaimed.

Still beet red, she nodded her head in their general direction, then told Juvia to get up, so that they could solve her little problem.

Juvia nodded, and followed her friend out of the cafeteria, still hearing the cheering.

“That was amazing, Lucy!”, she exclaimed as soon as they were in the privacy of the corridor. “Not only did you defend our womanly pride, but you also stood up to Natsu, and without blushing!” She was very happy for her best friend. She knew how it pained her not to be able to talk to him properly.

“Yeah, I've come to realize he may not be as great as I thought he would be. After today, I'm starting to think Loke might be a better choice”, Lucy replied, not really meaning what she said. After all, Loke was nice and all, but he was a bit of a womanizer.

“You can't mean that!”, gasped Juvia, “you can't let go of the love of your life because of me! I would be devastated if Nalu was no more!”

“...Nalu?” Asked Lucy tentatively.

“Your ship name! Natsu and Lucy. The ship must sail”, exclaimed Juvia.

“...Whatever”, sighed Lucy, already used to Juvia's fangirling. “And I'm not giving up on Natsu because of you. I'm giving up on him because he's an ass who doesn't seem to respect other people's problems.” As much as it pained her to let go of him, she simply couldn't be with someone so disregarding of other people's feelings.

“If you're sure”, said Juvia with a sad tone in her voice. “Well, I'm going to skip the rest of today's lessons, if you don't mind. I don't think I can handle any more attention for today”, she laughed.

“Alright, do you want me to go with you? It's not like one missing day would kill me”, said Lucy.

“No, it's okay. Go to your lesson. It should be starting any minute now”, stated Juvia, locking herself in one of the bathroom stalls.

Upon hearing that, Lucy looked at her watch, which was signaling that she had little more than 5 minutes to get to her next class. “Shit, you're right”, she exclaimed. “Are you sure you don't want company?”

“Don't worry about me, I'm fine”, answered Juvia through the door.

“Alright, if you're sure. I'll see you tonight, then”, said Lucy.

She heard a muffled ‘okay’ just as she was exiting the bathroom, right before she collapsed into someone, causing both of them to fall on the ground.

“I'm so sorry”, stuttered Lucy, trying to compose herself. “I wasn't paying attention to my surroundings, I'm already late as it is”, she said, moving to accept the hand the other person was offering to help her up when she noticed what the other was wearing.

_I know that scarf_ , she thought ("Of course you recognize it!", she chastised herself. "You're always looking in his direction. You're bound to memorize even the things he wore sooner or later").

“Oh, it's you”, Lucy sighed, getting up without his help. Honestly? She wasn't even sure she wanted to see him. Not now, not ever.

Natsu took his hand back, thinking that he never found himself in such an awkward situation.

_How can I make it up to her_ , he thought, _I don't want to lose her just because of my big mouth_.

“Can I take you to your next lesson?”, he asked abruptly, startling her. “We're going to the same class, after all.”

Shocked that he noticed her enough to know they were in the same class, Lucy nodded without thinking.

_What am I doing?!_ , she thought, _I just said I never wanted to see him again!_

But when she saw him smiling widely at her response, she couldn't help but smile back. He was just so adorable with that big, toothy grin!

They started walking down the corridor, feeling the same wave of awkwardness from before starting to surround them.

_Come on, man, say something! You'll lose her if you don't at least apologize_ , thought Natsu, thinking of what could be the best way to ask forgiveness to your crush.

“...Lucy?”, Natsu started tentatively, afraid that he might have ruined everything before it could even begin.

“...What?”, Lucy answered reluctantly.

_Damn it!_ Thought Natsu, his hopes of winning her over starting to crumble, _she doesn't even want to talk with me. I must have screwed up pretty badly if the most outgoing person I've ever met doesn't even want to be near me._

“I wanted to apologize for what happened in the cafeteria. I shouldn't have talked like that about something I know nothing about. And I'm especially sorry if I made you think you should feel embarrassed about it. I promise that, in the future, I will do some research before talking about something”, he finished, hoping against all hope that he didn't ruin his chances with her.

Lucy bit her lip, pondering about whether his apology was sincere or not. She wanted so badly to believe it was, but it was better to be safe than sorry.

She took a breath and started talking: “Regardless of what the topic was, you shouldn't just diminish another person's feelings. Especially if they're talking about their health. And yes, you shouldn't have assumed you knew everything about a topic you, as a man, wouldn't ever be able to usterstand.”

Natsu grimaced, “I'm really sorry about that. I promise I was raised better than that. I really don't know what came over me. It's like I can't connect my mouth to my brain whenever you're around.” He had started fumbling with his words, not realizing what he'd said until it was too late.

“...What?”, whispered Lucy, cheeks starting to get red.

With his own face aflame, Natsu started reprimanding himself for what felt like the thousandth time that day.

Damn it all! He was trying to get her to forgive him, not to give her another reason to avoid him!

He started laughing nervously, wishing to disappear in thin air.

But he knew that he had to come clean to her about his feelings. Regardless of the outcome, if he didn't speak then and there he would never be able to forgive himself.  
  
“I know this probably isn't the best moment, and that you probably wish to never see me again”, started Natsu rubbing the back of his neck, his voice hesitant, “But I've liked you for the longest time, and if you would just give me another chance, I'll prove to you that I'm not the jerk you probably think I am. I know I don't deserve it, but can I take you out at lunch tomorrow? If after that you still hate me, I will walk out of your life and you will never have to see me again.”

Natsu waited for an answer with bated breath, but all he got in return was a face not dissimilar to that of a fish, for Lucy's mouth was opening and closing without letting a single sound out.

Natsu waited some more, but the image in front of him didn't change. “I see”, he sighed resigned. He could feel his heart shattering, but he knew that he deserved the rejection. “I'll get out of your hair, then. I'm sorry to have bothered you.”.

He turned around to leave, not caring about missing classes, when he felt like he was being tugged.

He looked down and saw Lucy's hand on his arm. He looked at her face which, to his surprise, was beet red.

“Lucy?”, he asked tentatively, not sure how to interpret what he was seeing.

Lucy opened her mouth and then closed it, not sure what to say.

_Say something!_ Her inner self yelled, _your crush has just admitted that he likes you and he's apologizing for his behavior. The least you could do is accepting his invitation. Nobody said you have to marry him if he does turn out to be a jerk!_

Lucy turned redder at the thought of being married to Natsu, but quickly discarded the thought. She was going to go to lunch with him, and then decide if he was worthy of her time.

“One date”, she said watching his face perk up, “So I can see for myself if you really are like you say.”

_His smile is so bright... It's not fair! How can he be so handsome_ , thought Lucy.

“Thank you, Lucy! I promise you won't regret it”, said Natsu, looking happier than ever.

“I better not”, grumbled Lucy. “But you're paying! Consider it part of the apology”, she said with a smile on her face ("Seriously, his smile is so contagious. How can I stay mad at him?").

“Absolutely! Making you pay was the furthest thing in my mind anyway. What kind of man would I be if I made you pay”, he said, baffled that she would think him so rude.

_Dear God, can he be any cuter? I'm seriously in trouble now, thought Lucy_ , trying to will her heart to slow down.

“It's a date, then”, she exclaimed, hoping to sound cool and collected. “Now, I believe we have a class to attend to. Let's hurry before it's too late.” She started running, leaving a starstruck Natsu behind.

While running, a big smile formed on her face.

"Maybe this day isn't so bad, after all.”  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


**Author's Note:**

> The story was heavily inspired by a video called "I got that flow", which is a perfect example of what women would like to say when faced with people like Natsu or the guys in the video.
> 
> Also, fun fact: I actually read a post on Tumblr where a man said that women have periods because we don't exercise and we eat junk food. That's where I got that ridiculous notion about the body needing to purify itself.


End file.
